Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

Hi guys,

Just wondering if anyone has gone down the route of upgrading their lighting or other electrical equipment with explosion proof equipment suitable for hazardous areas.

What did you install and where did you get it?

Was wondering about it the other night as the top of my CCVM column reaches almost to my fluoro lights on the ceiling of my shed. Am considering moving and upgrading my lighting fixtures to something safer.

I’d also like to find an (ex proof) agitator for agitating the still contents for added efficiency.

Hello Tenor
Why don’t you pop into the welcome centre and tell us all a little about yourself.
The gear you have, what you are trying to make, how long you been distilling.
Sorry I can’t help answer your question as I did not know this sort of stuff existed much less whether I should use it or not. Hopefully someone can help you

Tenor,

You are discarding your foreshots?

If your fluro lights are getting close to ethanol ignition temp of 365degC you have big issues. Everything in your light fitting is contained and isn’t an issue imho. Upgrade to LED fittings is all you need, knock yourself out if you want to zone your still area. IIA T2 should see you through!

Cheers

Preface all this with - I am not a sparky.

I used to work with EX gear on drilling rigs.
It really is your last line of defence. Distance, ventilation and alarms were all more important in that line of work.

Iona knows more about light fittings than me. I would've thought your main risk is water/alcohol vapour condensing in the fitting and creating a short. Apparently highly unlikely???
If the fitting is moved away from your CCVM reflux condenser, you've just about removed that possibility. Maybe outdoor rated would lower the risk even further?

Guys,

A flourescent light fitting creates heat from the tube and the ballast within the enclosure of the light fitting. This acts as a natural condensate heater, due to this the light fitting is always above the dew point of ethanol or water and will not form vapour/water droplets inside the fitting. In realalty you turn your shed lights on and then start your heat up stage for a run, the time between the light fitting getting energised, "heat soaked" and vapour being produced from the still is more than enough time to raise the light fitting temperature above the dew point of water and ethanol.
Unless your light fitting has a poor connection to the power supply terminals the only spark produced is at the light switch when it switches the load on (shed lighting).

And yes @indenial, using outdoor/weatherproof fittings is the best practice in any shed for piece of mind.

Just to clarify I am an E&i electrician with 30+ years of experience in the trade, I also hold a Hazardous Area (HA) qualification and Type B gasfitting licence. I haven't blown anything up yet! :laughing-rolling:

Thanks iOna!

This is exactly the sort of quality information I was looking for.

Cheers!

iOnaBender wrote:Guys,

A flourescent light fitting creates heat from the tube and the ballast within the enclosure of the light fitting. This acts as a natural condensate heater, due to this the light fitting is always above the dew point of ethanol or water and will not form vapour/water droplets inside the fitting. In realalty you turn your shed lights on and then start your heat up stage for a run, the time between the light fitting getting energised, "heat soaked" and vapour being produced from the still is more than enough time to raise the light fitting temperature above the dew point of water and ethanol.
Unless your light fitting has a poor connection to the power supply terminals the only spark produced is at the light switch when it switches the load on (shed lighting).

And yes @indenial, using outdoor/weatherproof fittings is the best practice in any shed for piece of mind.

Just to clarify I am an E&i electrician with 30+ years of experience in the trade, I also hold a Hazardous Area (HA) qualification and Type B gasfitting licence. I haven't blown anything up yet! :laughing-rolling:

iOnaBender wrote:Guys,
I haven't blown anything up yet! :laughing-rolling:

C'mon, tell the truth.
Even as a kid I used to keep my bonfire night crackers and make little quarries and canals to blow up. :)

No desire to continue as an adult.
:)

Bonfire night..
Heehehe, Bwah ha ha ha
So as a pre teen i could walk into many different places (newsagents, corner stores and so forth) and buy fireworks for about 3 months of the year around "cracker night"
OMG the stuff we did.. We stopped using a pvc pipe to fire cheap 5/$1 rockets at each other when one flew between someones much younger brothers legs and exploded about 2ft behind..... ( We "just missed" his nads, This is how we learned stuff back in the day :)) )

The Tom Thumb, a tiny little 3/4" long cracker that came daisy chained in 1-200 packs were the best, we would would seperate them out and throw them at each other as a game, when they went off, it was a 2" ball of white explosion, they worked out at around a cent or so each in the early eighties, affordable by all lols.

That said i remember a few going off inches from my fingers... They are all still there... But there are a few who weren't so fortunate.... Many a tale of missing fingers was told ..

-Expletive- pansies these days :laughing-rolling:

The good old days when we had to take ownership of our own actions.
The poor little green toy soldiers that suffered many a Tom Thumb attack :laughing-rolling:

The Stig wrote:The good old days when we had to take ownership of our own actions.
The poor little green toy soldiers that suffered many a Tom Thumb attack :laughing-rolling:

I preferred a magnifying glass

Mmmm, there may or may not have been some pipe bombs manufactured in the old man’s shed with gun powder used to blow up rabbit warrens…. :D

Then worked out it was much more fun to buy a big f#%k off pole cat ferret at the local market and shove it into the warren! No nets, just stand there with the automatic beretta shotgun and smoke em as they flew out of the holes. Transport was a 10 speed push bike with handle bars rotated to use as a gun rack, a pack rack on the back with 1/4 to 1/2 a case of shotgun shells and ferret cage strapped on top……ahhh, those were the days.
Now you wouldn’t get out of your street without the jacks bearing down on you! Growing up in the country was awesome

Cheers

iOnaBender wrote:Mmmm, there may or may not have been some pipe bombs manufactured in the old man’s shed with gun powder used to blow up rabbit warrens…. :D

Then worked out it was much more fun to buy a big f#%k off pole cat ferret at the local market and shove it into the warren! No nets, just stand there with the automatic beretta shotgun and smoke em as they flew out of the holes. Transport was a 10 speed push bike with handle bars rotated to use as a gun rack, a pack rack on the back with 1/4 to 1/2 a case of shotgun shells and ferret cage strapped on top……ahhh, those were the days.
Now you wouldn’t get out of your street without the jacks bearing down on you! Growing up in the country was awesome

Cheers

Yes indeedy.
My jacket pockets were ripped out and my big ass ferret used to go in and lie around my back.
Not much more
exciting than listening to rabbits thump and waiting to see which holes they would come out of.
One man sport though.